University of Huddersfield finds cost-effective way to increase crossing safety

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor
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A United Kingdom-based team says it is feasible to enhance grade-crossing safety using a network of tiny wireless sensors powered by vibrations of an approaching train.

The UK’s Department for Transport (DfT) awarded funding to the Institute of Railway Research (IRR) to investigate new methods of crossing control. In completing the DfT-funded research project, the IRR carried out extensive testing and modeling at its fully-equipped rail research labs at the University of Huddersfield.

The team of rail experts found that networks of tiny wireless sensors could not only improve safety at railway crossings, but would also be much less costly to install and maintain, drawing their electrical power from track vibration.

The network of sensors would utilize energy harvesting to draw power from sources, such as track vibration. The sensors, which would be attached to tracks in the vicinity of a crossing, would form a wireless network to send a message to lower or raise the gates.

IRR’s professor in Railway Safety, Dr. Coen Van Gulijk explained that current train detection devices are expensive because they are designed to be failsafe, but noted the more affordable sensors can still “guarantee fail safety.”

The team estimates the cost savings using the sensor network versus a conventional detection system to be 96 percent with a convention system running £500,000 (US$662,000) and the wireless sensor network in the same situation could cost less than £20,000 (US$26,500) to install.

Research Fellow Dr. Farouk Balouchi said the network of sensors would be “self-healing,” explaining “if one sensor fails, the others talk to one another and create another network, creating another route for the information to travel.”

Balouchi also noted the wireless sensors would not only detect trains but, because they respond to vibrations, they could also be used to monitor the condition of the track and the track bed.

He also explained that while the proposal is “completely novel,” the technology has been tried and tested in the oil and gas industry and some safety-critical applications such as medical devices.

Citing the potential global impact of the research, the team said it would hold talks with industrial partners who can help bring the project to fruition.

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